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Inscription

"This here timeline was originally conceived and written by Mansonian chief Joe Oliver aka EXACT LEE. It was rewritten and gagged up and redrawn by David Silverman aka TUBATRON aka That Flaming Tuba Guy."

Year of the Man 1
1986

Height of Man: 8 Feet! Location: Baker Beach, San Francisco, CA Participants: 20! (yup, 20. That's the story, anyhow. Maybe 21? Who knows?? So long ago...)
Built in honor of the Summer Solstice. Or for some tragic private reason. Or for some cheerful public reason. Or some complex artistic expression. Or perhaps for some horsin' around Let's go with that, some horsin' around.

Year of the Man 2
1987

Height of Man: 20 Feet! Location: Baker Beach, San Francisco, CA Participants: 80
As the Man expanded in size, the triangular face remains as part of the image Sees only Stewart Harvey brings a camera, and takes one photo. That's all we gots, anyhow. Archives, schmarchives.

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Location: Baker Beach, San Francisco, CA Participants: 300+ (no one was keeping a log, we apologize.}
Legs and pelvis break as Man is lifted into place. He didn't drink enough milk as a kid. He is burned in a semi-erect position, which sounds like a goo punchline.

Year of the Man 5
1990

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Locations: Baker Beach, San Francisco, CA, Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: Baker Beach - 800, Black Rock _ 90)
An event so nice we held it twice. Well, not intentionally. At Baker Beach, police allowed The Man to be erected, but not burned. So - the first sojourn to Black Rock occured (sic) in August 1990.
Dan Miller becomes the Man's main man-chief engineer in charge of construction and erection of figure. Stop laughing at the word erection. Sheesh.
Blueprints created to build the Man each year. More tidy that way, see?

Year of the Man 6
1991

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 250
Burning Man is built and installed on a
barge which floats between two docks at Fort Mason. John Law creates first neon outline for the Man. John's Law's name appeared in MAD, issue 2, 1953, as drawn by Will Elder, but it''s probably a coincidence.
Though not mentioned in MAD, but significant, the 1st fire performance artist, Crimson Rose, ignites the Man.

Year of the Man 7
1992

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 600
The Man is loaded with fireworks. Some of the participants are pretty loaded too. This joke is available in the gift shop.

Year of the Man 8
1993

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 1000 (count 'em, 1000)
First layout with the Man in the center at the end of the main avenue and lamps to light the way. Eh, that's not too exciting. Let's talk about his erection. You see, that year — what's so funny?
Ok, fine, here's something: The 1st Theme Camp! Peter Doty creates Christmas Camp, giving out eggnog & fruitcake. He had no idea what Pandora's Box he was opening.

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 4000
A neon smiley face was visible in the face of the Man briefly prior to the burn. It is unknown it the Man felt his emotions were being played with.
After a jet car drive-by (piloted by Deso Molnar), the Man is lit with a flame-thrower. YEEEEE HAAAAA!!!!

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Location: Hualapai Playa, NV Participants: 10,000
The Man is raised off the playa on hay bales and immediately stats sneezing. Cacophony Society hangs huge silver testicles from the Man. This stops the sneezing. It also assists in his erection, i.e., standing him up.
Horrendous rain storms
stand hundreds during exodus, and parts of leviticus.
In fact, many stuck in that mess has enough time to read the entire Bible, and then rent their garments biblically.

Year of the Man 13
1998

Height of Man: 40 Feet! (plus hay bales) Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 15,000
The hay bales under the Man are painted. Several under the influence of certain things mistake hay bales for shredded wheat, have breakfast, and are medevaced (sic) out.
Streets are numbered, signs on the corners. Only 58% get hopelessly lost. 1st year with a theme: Nebulous Entity . Some find that to nebulous, and leave early.

Year of the Man 14
1999

Height of Man: 40 Feet! (plus hay bales) Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 23,000 Theme: Wheel of Time
The Man is placed at the center of a giant clock face with art pieces just hangin' around.
Everybody parties like it's 1999 for some reason.

Year of the Man 15
2000

Height of Man: 40 Feet! (plus hay bales) Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 25,400 Theme: The Body
In honor of that year's theme, many are on hand to witness the
Man's erection.
The Man burn is started early by accident, or premature incineration.
Built in honor of the Summer Solstice. Or for some tragic private reason. Or for some cheerful public reason. Or some complex artistic expression. Or perhaps for some horsin' around Let's go with that, some horsin' around.

Year of the Man 16
2001

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 30 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 25,659 Theme: Seven Ages
The Man is placed atop The Tower of Enlightenment (a.k.a. "the A-frame"). Atop of that was placed a ton of Playa dust (a.k.a. "OMG can you believe how f!k#ng dusty it is??")
The Man is Built in Nevada at the 80 Acres Work Ranch for the first time (a.k.a. "40 Acres and a Mule x 2 Work Ranch.").

Year of the Man 17
2002

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 40 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 28,979 (really exact now, eh?) Theme: Floating World
The Man is placed atop The Lighthouse (a.k.a. The Wedding Cake).
This year's theme introduced an armada of nautical actress & imagery that floats to this day.
Flaming dust tornados spin out of the Lighthouse
as the Man burns; a Native American tradition honors them as ancestors. A Bostonian tradition calls them "wicked coo."

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 35 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 35,567 Theme: Psyche - the Conscious, the Subconscious,
and the Unconscious.
The Man is placed atop a Fun House, with a 41 room maze, art everywhere, a 2nd level where participants could rotate the Man — it was bananas.

Year of the Man 21
2006

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 35 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 38,989 Theme: Hope and Fear: The Future
Another complex pedestal, this one being a 35 ft art deco pavilion housing an interactive maze. A few who got lost in last year's maze claimed to have stumbled out of this year's maze - finding themselves in the future! And pretty bummed they had missed last year's burn. That's their story, anyhow.
My prediction of BRC of Tomorrow, alas, has yet to come true. Perhaps tomorrow...

Year of the Man 22
2007

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 32 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 47,097 Theme: The Green Man
After the Man is torched during the lunar eclipse by a jerlass, the Man Krewe reassembles to build a perfect replica from scratch in 35 hours! Even found neon in Reno! A Phoenix, crafted from the remains of the Man, is placed on the face of the New Man to signify re-birth.

Year of
the Man 23
2008

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 50 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 49,599 Theme: The American Dream
Stunning views of BRC were provided from this 50ft obelisk, this year's Man base. It was bedecked with the flags of all nations, except the U.S. 'Cuz we burned them all! BAAHAHAHA! No, we didn't — I'm just horsin' around. (See Year 1.) Only thing burned was the Man, and the obelisk he rode in on.

Year of the Man 24
2009

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 25 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 43,558 Theme: Evolution
Construction of the Man takes approximately 950 pre-play man-hours at Black Rock Station and 1100 man-hours on installation including neon, rigging, and waxing. But no whining.
Population dipped down of the 1st time — will that ever happen again??

Year of the Man 25
2010

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 50 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 51,525 Theme: Metropolis: The Life of Cities
The giant art deco building the Man stood upon was either 50 or 60 ft tall, depending
on sources. I'm gonna go with 50, but let's have a show of hands. Um — really? 60? Dang, but I just printed this...
Larry may have had a highfalutin meaning to the theme, but many chose instead to make cheeky references to Fritz Lang's 1927 masterpiece Metropolis.

Year of the Man 26
2007

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 64 feet sez wikipediaLocation: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 53.963 Theme: Rites of Passage
The Man takes a walk! For the first time, he's not standing so stiff and all serious-like. I mean, he's a fun guy, likes to get about and check out the scene.
(Notice I didn't say anything about his erection? Trying not to work blue.)
Two notes: the weather was really the best, couldn't ask for anything better. And — for the first time — the event sold out. On July 24th even, Quite a change from 2009, when attendance dropped.

Year of the Man 27
2012

Height of Man: 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 50 feet? Yep! Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 56,149 Theme: Fertility 2.0
Inside the Man were a lot of Little Men, no royalty paid to the estate of Louisa May Alcott. A lot of amazing art
particularly the Pier 2.
After putting on glasses, realized theme was not Futility 2.0, and I drew this —

Year of the Man 28
2013

Height of Man: 50 Feet? I dunno. Height of Pedestal: 32 feet Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 69,613 Theme: Cargo Cult
Who is John Frum? Where is he frum? Will you walk around with a bag for a head? Will you fill that bag with booze? Will your head fill like a cargo container?

Year of the Man 29
2014

Height of Man: 105 Feet! Height of Pedestal: No Pedestal! Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 65,922 Theme: Caravansary
The Man was absolutely colossal! However, due to lack of radiation, he did not come to life to menace Hoover Dam. A disappointment. Happily, Duke Ellington's classic Caravan was frequently played.

Year of the Man 30
2015

Height of Man: 60 Feet! Height of Pedestal: 9 feet ,apparently Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: 67,564 Theme: Carnival of Mirrors
Mirrors, masks, mazes, merger, magic, my oh my. Be a cart, be a rube. Be a carny rube, a rube carny. a Rube Goldberg.
A fun time was had by all, event when the Flaming Tuba caught me slightly on fire.

Year of the Man 31
2016

Height of Man: Well over 40 Feet! Height of Pedestal: Ya got me... Location: Black Rock Desert, NV Participants: Like 70K, daddy-o Theme: Da Vinci's Workshop
The theme this year is to focus on the concept of the city-state that existed at the time of Da Vinci — whoa, what am I, public radio?? Look, just have a good time and mention Lorenzo de Medici once in a while, you'll be fine.
And now, its time to stop reading this nonsense and enjoy some horsing around.

The Man Krewe
(1997 - 2014 )

Ah well things do change. For many years, many great artists built the Man. But with last year's 105' Big Man, and its design change, I regret to inform y'all - The Man Krewe hath been disbanded. They had a grand party, a time wake, * probably several drinks. And they are around the Playa, doing great art elsewhere. The Man will continue, but without this fine Krewe. I conclude with a embellishment to an old saying "Law and Burning Man are like sausages, it is better not to see them being made."

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